Application Software Developers In Demand

By Nathan Eddy |
Posted 2013-05-17

More than 128,000 jobs were advertised online for application software developers in the United States in April--the most in-demand technology occupation in April and reaching a new high in the number of job ads-- according to Wanted Analytics, a source of real-time business intelligence for talent seekers.

Among the most in-demand software developer job titles were software engineer, senior software engineer, software development engineer, .NET developer and Java software engineer. Demand for this talent group has grown 16 percent from April of 2012 and more than 190 percent from four years ago, the study found.

Java, which is mentioned in two of the top 10 titles, (along with senior software engineer for Java) is the most commonly required skill in application software developer skill set. Other skills that are often specified in job ads are Structured Query Language (SQL), C# .NET and JavaScript.

The company’s Hiring Scale, which ranges from 1 to 99, with 99 representing the most difficult conditions, found these positions score a 75 on average across the United States, indicating that it is likely to be difficult to source potential candidates, and as demand continues, conditions will change and the level of difficulty may increase.

The Hiring Scale measures conditions in local job markets by comparing hiring demand and labor supply, and is part of the Wanted Analytics platform that offers business intelligence for the talent marketplace.

"With growing hiring demand for software developers, it is likely to be difficult to source potential candidates. As demand continues, conditions and the level of difficulty may increase," the report said. "The locations likely to experience the most difficulty with recruiting software development professionals are Baltimore, Md., and San Francisco, Calif."

Those two cities cities scored higher than a 90 on the scale, significantly more difficult than the national average. The report warned that with increased competition from employers to attract candidates, recruiters and hiring managers in these metro areas are likely to also experience a longer time-to-fill.

On a nationwide basis, the three metropolitan areas with the most demand for software developers were on the West Coast. Seattle, San Francisco, and San Jose lead the United States in the number of job ads during April, with Seattle posting the most open positions, with more than 13,000 ads at a 28 percent year-over-year increase. New York City and Washington, DC, rounded out the top five cities for this skill set.

Interestingly, the scale also provides some insight as to where the best places to source these candidates are. The cities of Olympia in Washington and Eugene in Oregon both scored under a 10 on the scale, and the report notes that since these locations are on the West Coast, they could be alternative locations for employers in Seattle and the Silicon Valley to recruit potential candidates.